How children learn to use diverse sources of efficacy information in developing a stable and accurate sense of personal efficacy is a matter of considerable interest

Gaining insight into one's underlying motives, it seems, is more like a belief conversion than a self-discovery process

Self-belief does not necessarily ensure success, but self-disbelief assuredly spawns failure.

In any given instance, behavior can be predicted best by considering both self-efficacy and outcome beliefs . . . different patterns of self-efficacy and outcome beliefs are likely to produce different psychological effects

Misbeliefs in one's inefficacy may retard development of the very subskills upon which more complex performances depend

Such knowledge is probably gained in several ways. One process undoubtedly operates through social comparison of success and failure experiences. Children repeatedly observe their own behavior and the attainments of others

Success and failure are largely self-defined in terms of personal standards. The higher the self-standards, the more likely will given attainments be viewed as failures, regardless of what others might think.